


let the tears fall down like rain

by helsinkibaby



Category: CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Community: fan_flashworks, Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-21
Updated: 2014-03-21
Packaged: 2018-01-16 12:29:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,393
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1347493
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/helsinkibaby/pseuds/helsinkibaby
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the events of "Forget Me Not", Sara visits an old friend.</p>
            </blockquote>





	let the tears fall down like rain

**Author's Note:**

> For the fan flashworks "revision" challenge

The sun was starting to set behind the basketball court when Sara got out of the car, walked slowly and carefully towards the door of the Rec Centre. With every step, the urge to turn tail and run intensifies but she makes herself put one foot in front of the other. Strangely, it gets easier when she's recognised, when James, a local kid who helps out around the place, greets her with a smile and a wave and a "We've missed you around here", followed by, "He's in the office." She's been seen now, has no choice but to be seen some more so she gives a small smile of thanks and keeps going. 

The office desk is as neat and tidy as any desk he'd worked on in the Crime Lab and when she stands in the open doorway, he's so intent on the computer screen that he doesn't even hear her approach. "Knock knock," she says softly, rapping on the door jam and he hears that all right, lifts his head and  springs to his feet all in one easy motion. 

She's not sure what she's expecting him to say but somehow it's not a surprise when he says nothing at all. He simply crosses the room in a couple of strides, a look on his face that is nothing less than relief, and he takes her in his arms and holds her tight. For the barest of seconds, she stiffens, then she relaxes into his embrace. 

She's not fond of having her personal space invaded, but for a Warrick Brown hug, she'll gladly make an exception. 

Uncharacteristically, he's the one who pulls back first, taking her by the shoulders and looking down into her eyes. "About time you got here," he says, and if the words sound harsh, that's negated by the tender tone in which they're said, the smile on his face.  "I thought I was gonna have to go down to HQ and bust you out."

Sara smiles, tucks a strand of hair behind one ear. "You talked to Nick," she guesses. 

"Every day, three times a day," Warrick confirms. "And Greg, and Brass." She knows he knows it all then; the case, Basderic, Grissom, everything. "Why didn't you call me?"

He sounds genuinely baffled, even hurt and all she can do is shake her head. "Because that would have made it real," she says, simple and honest, the most honest she's been in weeks. 

Whatever Warrick might have been expecting, it probably wasn't that because he looks momentarily taken aback. Only for a moment though, then he nods, lets go of her shoulders and goes back to the computer. A few keystroke then he snaps off the monitor, grabs his jacket from the back of the chair. "C'mon," he says, "Let's get out of here."

She nods, lets his loop his arm casually over her shoulders as they walk out. The gold lettering of the "Director" stickers that James had put up glint in the flourescent light as the door closes behind them and Sara can't help but notice as they walk toward the exit how many people smile and wave at Warrick, the look on his face as he replies in kind. 

Once, she'd thought he was crazy, walking away from CSI to run this place. 

Now she's wondering if she was the crazy one to stay, crazier still to return having gotten out in the first place. 

She's automatically heading for her car when he taps her on the arm. "I'll drive," he says. "Drop you back later. Unless you want to stay over."

It wouldn't be the first time he's made that offer and she accepts without a word, changing direction and following him to his car. She winces when he turns the key in the ignition and rap music blares out loud enough to make her ears bleed. Warrick gives her an apologetic smile, turns the stereo all the way down and begins the short drive back to his house. 

It's been a while since Sara's been here and the sight of some kid's toys in the yard at the side of the house makes her smile. "Eli's not as tidy as you," she observes and Warrick grins as he opens the door. 

"He's my work in progress," he says, a faraway smile on his face and when Sara catches him looking at the framed photograph on the wall of him and Grams - the first thing everyone sees when they walk into the house - she knows why. 

"You repainted," she says when she gets into the living room and he snorts at that. 

"Had to," he says. "Eli was here a few weekends ago, decided to get creative with his paintbox when my back was turned for all of five seconds."

She shouldn't laugh at that, but she does. "And you painted over your son's masterpiece? You're a cruel father."

Warrick takes the teasing in the spirit it's meant. "You didn't see the walls," he says with an exaggerated shudder. "Grams would have come back and haunted this place if I'd let it stay." He holds up his cell phone. "The usual?"

Nodding, she spends the time that he's ordering pizza - large, half meat feast for him, half veggie for her - looking at the photographs of Warrick and Eli - mostly Eli - that adorn the walls. "He's getting so big," she says when he returns, handing her an open beer bottle. 

"Tell me about it." Warrick sighs, that same faraway look on his face. Visibly shaking himself he continues, "And bold when he wants to be... God help us if he's anything like me." 

"I don't know," Sara says, all levity forgotten. "I don't think that'd be so bad."

Warrick gives her his trademark thousand watt grin and she finds herself smiling back - it's hard not to when he looks at her like that. "You wouldn't have said that when we first met," he reminds her and she shrugs. 

It's true, she knows, because in those first few days and months, if anyone had told her Warrick Brown would be her best friend, the person she would trust most apart from Grissom, she would never have believed them. "Things change," she says and suddenly she's not thinking of her and Warrick anymore. 

He must see that because he sighs, sits down on the couch and pats the place beside him. "Grissom." It's not a guess and she nods. 

"I'm here... he's there. He's too busy to come home too often, there's only so much vacation time I can take... Apparently it's for my own good." The words are as hard to say as they were to hear and she takes a swig of her beer to wash the bitter taste out of her mouth. 

It doesn't work. 

"He could change his mind." 

Warrick's trying to give her hope; she dismisses it with the raise of one eyebrow. "Grissom?" That is a question and he tilts his bottle in mock salute. 

"True."  He raises the bottle to his lips, studies her as he drinks. "It's his loss, Sara."

He's as sincere as she had been a few moments earlier and she takes a drink to cover up the lump in her throat. "I told some people earlier that I didn't tell people because I thought they'd blame me...you know how Grissom is still a god in that place. And I've been trying to pretend that everything's fine, that I'm ok, that we're ok... I never wanted people to find out... especially not like this."

Warrick's nodding. "Got that t-shirt," he says and she's reminded of more than one late night conversation when things were falling apart between him and Tina. "And I know you don't want to hear this right now... but it does get better."

Tears sting her eyes suddenly and she looks down, fighting them for all she is worth. After a moment, she feels warm fingers taking the bottle from her hand, hears the glass hitting the coffee table. Then she feels a pair of strong arms going around her, feels herself being pulled towards him. 

Even if she wanted to struggle, she doesn't have the strength so she lets go, lets herself fall into him and for the first time since that phone call, she lets herself really, properly, cry. 


End file.
